bookrandom Chapter 164 The Useless Prince's Power Seizure (42)
Chapter 164 The Useless Prince's Power Seizure (42)
As soon as he came out of the emperor's place, Jingli immediately reported the situation to 6058.
[6058: Collapsed?]
With a hint of delight, he immediately opened the system and analyzed and compared the changes in outliers during this period.
[6058: Indeed, the outlier decreased last night, so it seems the landslide occurred last night.]
He chuckled as he finished speaking.
[6058: If this lightning strike is truly an emergency measure by a pseudo-world consciousness, then I can only describe it as—impotent rage.]
Jingli added: "He reaped what he sowed."
The two of them laughed simultaneously.
It's been less than three days since I left the imperial palace at 6058 until last night. During these three days, it has been drizzling in the imperial city, so it seems the rain at the imperial palace is quite heavy.
How could those outside the world have imagined that their intimidating lightning would directly destroy one of the formations?
It's really like shooting yourself in the foot.
For Jingli and his group, it came without any effort at all.
Adding to the previous transmigrator system, for a moment, 6058 even suspected that the person manipulating this world was an undercover agent sent by Mr. Lu.
Or perhaps this person from outside the world is arrogant and foolish, genuinely believing that the world is already theirs.
After joking about the enemy, let's get back to the main topic.
[Jingli: The shadowy figure has been released for several days now. Before yesterday, I couldn't really see its impact on the emperor, but when I saw him today, the destruction of the formation should have had a significant impact on him.]
After a moment's thought, 6058 analyzed: "This doesn't necessarily mean the shadowy figure was useless to him. After all, we can't confirm how often he goes to that absorption formation. Today's reaction might mean he sensed a problem with the formation and thus spent more time sensing it within it."
It has to be said that 6058 is close to the truth.
[6058: The timing of this formation's collapse is perfect. Even if we do something in the Cold Spring, he'll probably just think that the differences are due to a problem with the formation.]
[6058: Furthermore, with the spread of poison and the erosion of the shadows, his body will only deteriorate further.]
[6058: At the same time, his reliance on formations will also increase.]
[6058: Then, a vicious cycle begins.]
Just then, Jingjing, who was changing his water, rubbed her eyes: "He's up so fast, he gave the little bird a wicked smile?"
Jingli rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought: "No wonder he encouraged me to soak in the cold spring more often."
6058's tone became lighter:
[It seems he values his life quite a bit. The more you seduce him, the stronger your connection becomes, and the less energy he expends when he tries to "possess" you.]
6058 confidently stated, "I predict he'll make his move within three years."
Jingli smiled as she thought of the little piglets in the system.
Then naturally I'll raise this little piglet until it's plump and healthy, and give my cheap emperor father a good surprise!
·
After analyzing the situation with 6058, Jingli no longer held back and placed the talisman that had previously sealed the shadow near the cold spring, slowly releasing the shadow into it at the speed that 6058 had calculated.
As always, the little piglets frolicked in the cold spring in place of Jingli.
It is enveloped in the energy of the scenery, so there is no need to fear the shadows within.
To ensure the survival of the shadowy figures, Jingli would occasionally leave the palace.
Each time you go to the vicinity of a palace, collect a stack of shadow talismans, and then place the talismans near the "divine water" of the palace.
This went on for a while, and Jingli became somewhat numb to it all.
He doesn't deal with the shadows; he's just their mover.
During this period, Lang Yue also visited Yu An alone.
Jingli didn't specifically investigate what they were talking about, but judging from Yu An's ups and downs and the fact that his blackening value eventually dropped by 23 points, Lang Yue had clearly explained what she knew about the Yu Dynasty and her connection with Yu An's mother, Wan Niang.
As a result, Jingli also obtained two more time compression cards, as well as various skill cards for attack, survival, and buffs.
6058 couldn't help but exclaim: Having a not-so-smart counterfeit system is actually pretty good!
That night, Yu An entered the illusion of the cold spring once again. He looked at the wet scenery, then at the little piglets in the cold spring, and smiled softly.
"I used to not believe in fate."
"But if the world were in Your Highness's hands, things would be quite good."
Yu An's voice change is now basically complete, deep with a slight hoarseness that tickles Jing Li's heart.
He was still wearing that human skin mask, but Jingli saw his original face.
He grew taller and stronger, while Jingli, though also trying to grow taller, was still a head shorter than him.
As he said these words, his eyes held a sense of relief and an unintentional tenderness.
It's somewhat similar to my previous dream.
Jingli emerged from the spring, casually draping her wet hair over her shoulders.
He looked at Yu An and said earnestly, "Don't believe in fate; it's all up to human effort."
He laughed: "How do you know that what you think isn't what Heaven wants?"
Wanting to see Yu An's true appearance, his eyes gleamed with a faint pink light. His light-colored undergarment was damp, revealing a semi-transparent texture. The white mist rising from the cold spring became his backdrop, and Yu An felt a little short of breath.
Sure enough, the young prince looks completely different from how he appears from afar and up close.
From a distance, he could still console himself that His Highness was so handsome that he wanted to look at him simply because of the universal human desire for beauty.
But upon closer inspection, he realized he couldn't fool himself.
His mouth was dry, and he wanted to pull His Highness into his arms, to hide him away so that only he could see him like this.
Jingli heard the fake system's announcement about the corruption value again. It showed an upward trend for a while and then stabilized, which gave Jingli a headache.
He said unhappily, "I'm talking to you, why are you looking at me like that?"
Yu An then came to his senses and knelt down on one knee.
"Your Highness is absolutely right."
In fact, he no longer remembered what Jingli had just said.
It seems like some kind of divine will.
But it doesn't matter anymore; whatever fate may bring, it's no longer his concern.
Since His Highness came into his life, all the injustices he hated had vanished.
He recalled that birthday a few years ago, when the little girl, carrying a bowl of longevity noodles, braved the wind and snow to reach his dilapidated house, left him a hand warmer, and then braved the cold wind to go back.
And on the night before he left, His Highness had tears in his eyes and asked himself why he had become his guard.
At the time, Yu An was unaware of the truth; he only wanted to use the Third Prince's influence to find an opportunity to kill the dog emperor who had caused his family's ruin.
What did he say to His Highness at that time?
"Your Highness, it is getting late, please return."
Recalling those words, the image of Jingli braving the snow and his tearful eyes pierced Yu An's heart.
He truly regretted it.
At that time, we should have tried to persuade him to stay. If the two of us had talked a little longer, His Highness might not have been so heartbroken.
Seeing that he was lost in thought again, Jingli wrinkled her nose and said, "Get up."
Upon hearing this, Yu An stood up and saw that Jing Li was still wet. She wanted to reach out and wipe the water droplets off his face, but she restrained herself.
"Your Highness, it's autumn now and the weather is cold. You should dry yourself off quickly."
Jingli nodded: "Then let's go."
After saying that, Jingli and Yu'an left Lengquan together. Yu'an still took over Jingjing's work, took out a fine cotton cloth and wrapped Jingli up tightly, and said, "Xiao'an will help Your Highness dry her hair again."
Jingli's long hair wasn't completely wet. He usually blew his hair in his personal space before going to sleep, but since Yu An rarely took the initiative to do something like this, he agreed.
The two entered the bedchamber together and sat on the chaise lounge. Jingjing immediately brought clean undergarments, and palace servants were waiting behind her to help Jingli change.
Yu An took it and nodded gently to her: "Lady Jingjing, you should rest first. I will watch over His Highness tonight."
“This…” Jingjing looked at Jingli and saw that he didn’t seem to care. She handed the tray with clothes in her hand to Yu An and said with difficulty, “Jingjing is His Highness’s head maid. It’s not right for her to rest away from His Highness.”
Yu An pursed his lips into a straight line, but finally compromised and said, "Tonight I will protect Your Highness in the palace. The nights have been cold lately, and Your Highness has also soaked in the cold spring. I would appreciate it if you could ask the kitchen to prepare some hot soup. I will dry Your Highness's hair and then you can have some soup."
After a moment's thought, Jingjing agreed.
Langyue never trusted the emperor, and everything in the scenic area had to be guarded by palace servants she personally selected.
Seeing Jingjing leave with the palace servants, Yu An secretly breathed a sigh of relief, then picked up a piece of cotton cloth and wrapped it around Jingli's wet hair.
Jingli looked at him with a smile in her eyes: "These things can be left to them, why do you need to do them yourself?"
Yu Anye didn't know how to answer. After seeing His Highness's wet appearance up close, she couldn't suppress the feeling that she didn't want others to see His Highness. Even the palace servants changing clothes seemed particularly annoying.
Yu An made an excuse: "Your Highness has been leaving the palace more often these days, and since Lady Jingjing can't accompany you, it's only natural that I, Yu An, must take good care of Your Highness."
Jingli listened to the fake system announce the 11-point increase in favorability, but did not expose Yu An's little scheme.
[6058: Sigh, I told you, with this level of affection, you should have started dating early.]
Afterwards, she muttered, "It's not spring yet."
Jingli didn't quite understand the meaning of the second half of the sentence, so she corrected 6058, saying: "In this world, we're at the age where we should be getting married."
6058 has fallen silent.
Jingli felt Yu An gently stroking his hair, which tickled him a little, and he couldn't help but move his shoulders.
"Did Xiao An hurt His Highness?"
Yu An's breath tickled Jing Li's ears as he spoke.
"No, hurry up and get it done, I'm a little sleepy."
When Yu An saw Jing Li's reddened ear tips, he was stunned for a moment, and that unbearable emotion welled up in his heart again.
He restrained himself and quickened the wiping motions on his hands.
Their breathing became slightly erratic.
After Yu An dried Jingli's hair until it was half dry, Jingjing served her a bowl of hot soup at a comfortable temperature.
Jingli quickly got up, ran to Jingjing, picked up the soup and drank it, not forgetting to sweetly say:
"Thank you, Sister Jingjing, I feel much warmer now."
Jingjing said, "Your Highness, please don't tease me. Xiao An is so thoughtful. I should learn from him."
Jingli ignored him and continued to sip the soup.
If you look closely, you can see a hint of shyness in his back view.
But Yu An merely watched the interaction between the two, his eyes unfathomable.
After drinking the soup and rinsing his mouth, Jingli went back into his personal space to practice energy control before taking another shower, drying his hair, and going out to rest.
Jingjing was still sleeping on the small couch in Jingli Palace, while Yu An stood by Jingli's bed, quietly looking at the hanging bed curtains, as if he could see the sleeping face of the person behind them through the thin curtains.
That night, Jingli had another dream.
The dream was extremely chaotic, and he couldn't remember much of it. However, after being woken up by Jingjing the next day, he felt something strange and exclaimed "Ah!" in confusion.
Yu An, who was waiting to the side, was taken aback. Just as he was about to go over to see what had happened, he heard Jingjing chuckle twice and say to the palace servants in the hall, "You may leave now."
Seeing that Yu An did not move, she waved to him and said, "Xiao An, you can go out first. His Highness will be here shortly."
Yu An was full of doubts, but since Jing Jing had spoken and Jing Li had not said anything, he had no choice but to suppress his curiosity and leave Jing Li's bedroom.
He could only vaguely see that Jingli had shrunk completely under the covers, and he had no idea what had happened.
"Your Highness need not feel ashamed in front of Jingjing."
Yu An had excellent hearing and heard faint sounds coming from inside the palace doors that were not yet closed.
Yu An felt as if his heart was crawling with ants, making him both itchy and painful. As if possessed, he quietly approached a window that had been left ajar.
He couldn't see anything through the crack in the window, but the flickering candlelight made him seem to hear a crackling sound.
"Your Highness will inevitably experience these things. I wonder what kind of sweet dream Your Highness had last night?"
Jingjing's voice was tinged with laughter, yet exceptionally gentle.
Immediately following was Jingli's muffled voice: "What can a dream remember? Sister, please don't make fun of me."
"Your Highness, how could Jingjing dare?"
In the last sentence, Jingjing's voice had taken on a touch of coquettishness that she had never shown to others.
Yu An felt a tightness in his chest, his fists clenching and unclenching.
After a long while, Jingli finally came into his sight, and he quickly moved away from the window crack.
It wasn't until Jingli came out that Yu An noticed a blush on his face that he had never seen before, as if it had been layered on by the flickering candlelight in the palace.
Yu An was momentarily lost in thought, feeling as if he were floating on the surface of water.
Jingli glanced at him only once before immediately averting her gaze and hurrying towards the hall where the morning lessons were to be held.
Yu An bit his lip, and only after Jing Li disappeared from his sight did he return to his living quarters in the side hall. He took off his human skin mask, filled a basin with cold water, and splashed it hard on his face.
[Keiri: Mommy...]
Within the system, Jingli's voice carried a shy, tearful tone.
[Keiri: I've really grown up...]
6058 didn't understand Jingli's meaning for a moment, but just then a palace maid walked past him with the clothes Jingli had changed out of yesterday, whispering something to each other.
Upon hearing this, 6058 immediately understood.
He had already warned Jingli about today's situation when she reported her physiological reactions to him last time.
Judging from the little fool's shy appearance today, it's best not to tell him that the palace servants already know what happened this morning.
At the same time, the fake product system's announcements started ringing again, with notifications of rising favorability and fluctuating corruption values.
Jingli's shyness about what happened that morning was interrupted by the broadcast, and she asked somewhat confusedly, "Why does Xiao An's affection level increase always fluctuate along with her darkening value lately?"
Looking at the 199/200 favorability rating in the second stage, and recalling Yu An's expression as dark as the bottom of a pot when she left today, 6058 couldn't help but chuckle:
It seems that today's provocation has made some people realize their true feelings.
·
【small theater】
Yu Yuanyuan: Good news, I'm in a storyline!
Yu Yuanyuan: Bad news! His Highness has a little secret... Waaaaaah...
Little Fish (face flushed red) (covering her mouth with her hand): Don't say it! Otherwise everyone will know!
6058: Hmm, actually... it should have already spread among the palace servants, probably, maybe.